Special Editorial From 15 Jewish Newspapers In The Country: #WeAreAllJews

The following is a joint editorial drafted by Jane Eisner, Editor-in-Chief of The Forward, and Dovid Efune, Editor-in-Chief and CEO of The Algemeiner, and signed by a dozen leaders in American Jewish journalism.

Earlier this year, our colleagues at the three leading Jewish newspapers in the UK published the same front-page headline and joint editorial voicing concern over rising antisemitism in Britain’s Labor party.

Today we have found a mournful occasion to follow in their footsteps.

For many Jews, the United States has long held a unique role in our collective imagination. It has been an unprecedented land of promise, of refuge, of freedom, opportunity and of safety.

But after the horrific attack this past Shabbat at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh in which 11 of our brothers and sisters were brutally murdered, we can’t help but be shaken and concerned for the America we have come to know and love.

We therefore join together to unequivocally condemn this brutal act of antisemitism and all deadly acts of hate. We also condemn the climate of hate that has been building for some time now, especially on college campuses and on social media, where the veneer of anonymity has allowed antisemitic cesspools to flourish, and from irresponsible political leaders who engage in hateful speech and who are abetted by the silence of others.

As journalists, we hold a variety of opinions about politics in this country and in Israel; the American Jewish community is diverse, and those differences are reflected on the pages of its media.

In coming together now, we are not erasing those differences, but rising above them, to issue a call for solidarity and respect, and asking our political and communal leaders to do the same.

The gunman who invaded a sanctuary on Shabbat did not distinguish among his victims. To him, they were all Jews.

We are all Jews. Let this horrific massacre be a moment of redemption as well as grieving. Let us argue with each other as Hillel argued with Shammai — with civility. Let us acknowledge our common humanity with other Americans who have been subject to unconscionable violence, too.

Jewish media has a long and proud history in America, and we pledge to continue our mission to inform, reflect and bind our communities, even more necessary in this painful time.

7 COMMENTS

Soros is also a Jew, and so are many Reform people, and so are most editors of Fake News as well as many clowns in Hollywood. Instead of #WeAreAllJews which means nothing or worse, they should make #WeAreAllTorahJews.

Civility is wonderful. But let us not compare the divide between those who follow the Torah and those who desecrate her openly and proudly, to an argument between Hillel and Shamai where there are actually two sides.
It’s pathetic that these signatories take themselves seriously.